[Dan D'Silva]

Hello again.

Does anyone know when the horizontal bar on the back of dirk scabbard throats for strapping to a belt first appeared? Judging by the photos I can find, it appears standard on modern dirks, and probably became predominant during the Victorian period (although sadly not many people see fit to photograph scabbards from the back, so it's not always easy to tell), but some modern repros of earlier-style dirks also have them -- even Vince Evans made at least one Jacobite-period dirk with one.

Failing that, does anyone know of any catalogues that might shed light on the subject?